Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Description

Controls

1. Duration: 2 hours

2. Closed book and closed notes; you will be given any tables required (e.g., Laplace transforms).

3. Textbooks: There are MANY textbooks, including:

·         Ogata, Modern Control Engineering, current (or earlier) edition (Prentice-Hall)

·         J.R. Rowland, Linear Control Systems

·         Franklin, Powell, & Emami, Feedback Control of Dynamic Systems, 3rd (or earlier) edition

·         R.C. Dorf, Modern Control Systems

·         F.H. Raven, Automatic Control Engineering

·         S.C. Gupta and L. Hasdorff, Fundamentals of Automatic Control

·         J.J. D'Azzo and C.H. Houpis, Linear Control System Analysis and Synthesis

There is no “right” book. Any of these books and many more deal with linear control theory.

4. Topics. The exam will cover linear control theory: 

·         Laplace transforms

·         Transfer functions and Block diagrams of control systems

·         System stability through pole location

·         Root locus for analysis and design

·         Steady-state sinusoidal response, amplitude and phase characteristics

·         Nyquist stability criterion

·         Bode diagrams and compensation, lead/lag compensation

·         Transient response of dynamic systems 

5. Topics not covered:

·         State space control concepts

·         Optimal control

·         Stochastic control

·         Digital control

6. Nature of exam: 2-4 problems; calculators allowed